Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
School Redesign Grant Cohort V Submission Requirements
Updated 11-15-2013
Table of Contents
School Redesign Grant Requirements Overview
2
Section I.
Executive Summary
3
Section II.
District-Level Redesign
4
Section III.
School-Level Redesign
8
Section IV.
Implementation Timeline and Benchmarks: Instructions
13
Section V.
Measurable Annual Goals: Instructions
14
Section VI.
Budget: Instructions
16
Appendix A:
Federal Requirement Checklist
17
Appendix B:
Guidance on Incorporating the Conditions for School
Effectiveness
Appendix C:
Addressing the Conditions for School Effectiveness,
Supplemental Planning Form
19
23
Appendix D:
Required Section for Restart Applications
24
Appendix E:
Implementation Benchmarks - Additional Guidance
26
Last updated November 15, 2013
School Redesign Grant Requirements Overview
An Act Relative to the Achievement Gap signed into law in January 2010 established new processes and
intervention powers for improving the performance of the lowest performing schools in the state. The
U.S. Department of Education is also providing a new infusion of federal School Improvement Grant
(SIG) funds (under Section 1003(g) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act) to support this
work. Massachusetts refers to this competitive grant process as the School Redesign Grant (SRG.) ESE is
consolidating and integrating federal grant and state statutory requirements in order to create an aligned
planning and school redesign process for districts with Level 4/Priority schools. The Redesign Plan
template integrates the federal and state legislative requirements with the state’s Accountability and
Assistance Framework, and serves as the narrative component of a district’s application on behalf of
eligible persistently lowest achieving schools for SRG funds.
The Redesign Plan includes the following sections, which must be completed and submitted in order to
apply for a school redesign grant:
I. Executive Summary: an overview of the district’s overall plan for school redesign.
II. District-Level Redesign: a description of district-level strategies, resources, and use of policy
options to support and monitor the implementation of school-level redesign efforts.
III. School-Level Redesign: a narrative that describes the key issues and priority areas for improvement
to be addressed by the school, the intervention model to be used, the key strategies, aligned with the
conditions for school effectiveness, that will be used to accelerate improvement, and the monitoring
system to be used to assess progress.
IV. Implementation Timeline and Benchmarks: a listing of implementation benchmarks, aligned with
the priority areas for improvement and related strategies, that will be used to track and monitor
progress throughout the course of the redesign effort and the 3-year redesign timeframe.
V. Measurable Annual Goals: measurable annual goals are the standard for monitoring
implementation of redesign efforts, renewal of federal grant funds, and exiting Level 4 status.
VI. Budget: a detailed budget with narrative for how the district proposes to expend SRG funds.
Note regarding the Restart Model: If a district opts to submit an application for a Restart Model it must
complete Appendix D: Required Section for Restart Applications and include a signed copy when the full
application is submitted to ESE.
Note regarding the School Closure model: If a district opts to close an eligible school using the federal
“School Closure” model, it may apply for SRG funding to pay certain reasonable and necessary costs
associated with the closure. In this case, the district does not need to complete sections III, IV, and V of
the proposal. Justification for closure costs should be provided within the narrative section contained
within the budget workbook.
Format and Submission Requirements
The Redesign Plan must:
 Be prepared within a word-processing program and printed on plain, 8 ½ x 11” size paper that is
suitable for reproduction. Three ring binders will not be accepted;
 Contain one-inch margins and use 11-point font, or larger;
 Include a Table of Contents that includes attachments and appendices; and
 Include page numbers in the bottom right hand corner of each page, including attachments
The Executive Summary and District-Level Redesign components are limited to 20 pages of text total.
The School-Level Redesign component for each is limited to 30 pages of text. The Implementation
Timeline and Benchmarks, Measurable Annual Goals, Budget, and any additional appendices or
attachments that the district may want to include are not counted toward these page limits.
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I. Executive Summary
Instructions
Provide an overview (no-more than two pages) of the district’s overall plan for school redesign.
The executive summary should be suitable for sharing with the general public, including essential
stakeholders such as families, students, and school-level educators. The executive summary should
provide a vision for what the district and school will look like in three years, from the perspective
of students and adults, and highlight the key priorities and strategies that will be used to engage in
successful turnaround.
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II. District-Level Redesign
Instructions
The district must demonstrate that it has the capacity to plan for, implement, monitor, and sustain
school-level redesign efforts, including using SRG funds to provide adequate resources and related
support at identified schools in order to effectively implement the required activities of the school
intervention model it has selected. A district that applies for SRG funding must serve each of its
applicant Level 4 schools using one of the four federal school intervention models—Turnaround1,
Restart, Closure, or Transformation.
The district-level redesign section of the narrative includes six parts:
1. Analysis of key district needs and challenges related to school turnaround
2. Key strategies and theory of action
3. District redesign and planning
4. Policies and strategies to support school-level redesign
5. District systems for supporting and monitoring implementation
6. District systems implementation benchmarks
Please complete each part of the district-level redesign narrative, following the instructions included
in each part.
District-Level Redesign Narrative
1. Analysis of key district needs and challenges: Provide a description of the district’s core
challenges and issues related to turning around the school(s), based on data and the district’s
assessment of its current systems and policies for supporting underperforming schools.
In the description of your baseline data and needs analysis:
a. Describe how the district examined and analyzed multiple sources of data (e.g., MCAS,
growth, other achievement data, perceptual and behavioral data, and Conditions for School
Effectiveness self-assessment results) by sub-groups, grades, and other categories to identify
explanations for achievement outcomes and to identify patterns in the data.
b. Describe the core issues of academic concern (e.g., the performance of students in particular
subject areas, in certain grades, among certain populations of students) that were determined
through data analysis. Describe and provide data for those areas where schools and/or
significant groups of students are achieving below standard and/or that show student
achievement is flat or has declined over time. For high schools, this should include a specific
analysis regarding off-track (for graduation) and out-of-school youth.
c. Describe how the district developed hypotheses and identified possible causes for academic
concerns. What are the questions that the district used to investigate observable patterns in
A note on the term “turnaround”: The U.S. Department of Education uses the term “Turnaround” as the name
for one of the four required intervention models that must be implemented to receive federal SIG funding.
Massachusetts state law uses the term “turnaround plan” which generally refers to a plan created to intervene in the
state’s lowest-achieving schools. In this document, the term “Redesign Plan” refers to the general “turnaround plan”
specified in state law; the term “Turnaround” refers to the specific federal intervention model.
1
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the data? What are the district’s hypotheses about the possible reasons for the observed
patterns and trends?
2. Key strategies and theory of action: Describe the district’s approach to turning around
underperforming schools, the theory of action guiding district efforts, and the key district
strategies that will assist and support turnaround efforts of identified schools.
3. District redesign and planning: Provide a brief description of the district’s planning and
decision-making process, including descriptions of teams or working groups and stakeholder
groups involved in the planning process. In the narrative, please:
a. Describe the overall structure of the district's redesign planning and decision-making
process, including the composition of district-level and school-level redesign teams, the
identity and credentials of key team members, how often teams meet and interact, and the
process by which decisions were or will be made.
b. Describe how the district used district- or school-level teams (e.g., working groups, redesign
teams) to select the intervention model for each school.
Specific Instructions for Part 4 (a-e):
Level 4 districts and districts with Level 4 schools are encouraged to use this portion of the
narrative (specifically, 4a) to list and briefly describe the changes in policy and strategies that are
listed in relevant planning documents (e.g., existing Level 4 Turnaround Plan or a Level 4 District
Plan [Accelerated Improvement Plan].) As you list each key change in policy, strategy, or use of
resources, please briefly describe how the change will directly support redesign efforts in
identified schools.
Addressing the Federal Requirements:
Federal requirements stipulate that districts selecting the Turnaround or Transformation
intervention models implement specific strategies, as listed in Appendix A, Federal Requirement
Checklist. Districts are responsible for addressing each of the federal requirements. If your
narrative response to 4a does NOT directly address the policy issues listed in 4b, 4c, 4d, and 4e,
then please provide a narrative response to these items that describes how the district will
address the federal requirements and use these strategies to support school-level redesign
efforts.
Note: If the district chooses to implement a Restart Model in a school, it must complete
Appendix D: Required Section for Restart Applications and include a signed copy when the
full application is submitted to ESE.
4. Policies and strategies to support school-level redesign: Describe the changes in policy and
use of strategies and resources that will be employed to support school-level redesign efforts.
a. Please list the key changes in policy, strategies, and use of resources and describe how the
policy, strategy, or use of resources will directly support school-level redesign efforts. In
your narrative, please discuss:
i. District policies and practices that currently exist that may promote or impede the
implementation of proposed plans;
ii. Modifications and changes in policy, strategies, and use of resources that will enable the
school(s) to fully implement the selected intervention model(s) and related strategies; and
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iii. Potential implications of the changes in policy on component schools and how the district
will ensure that other schools are not adversely impacted by changes to the policies and
practices.
b. School redesign leadership pipeline: Describe the actions that the district has taken or will
take to recruit, screen, select and place—through both internal staff development and external
recruitment—effective principals, teacher leaders, and teachers who have the experience,
skill, and expertise needed to implement the selected intervention model.
i. State whether or not a new principal has been selected to lead the school-level redesign
effort and provide evidence that the principal (new or existing) has the necessary
competencies and experience to lead a successful redesign effort. Please provide data
demonstrating that the new or current principal has a successful and demonstrated track
record of improvement in other schools or in another district (please include student
performance data from previous school(s)). If a new principal has yet to be chosen,
describe how the district will ensure that a leader is chosen that meets the criteria of this
section.
ii. For districts using the TURNAROUND MODEL: describe how the district will use
locally developed competencies to measure the effectiveness of staff, including screening
all existing staff and rehiring not more than 50 percent of the staff from the previous year.
c. External partner’s pipeline2: If applicable, describe how the district will recruit, screen, and
select external providers with the requisite quality and expertise necessary to support and
provide assistance to the district or to schools in implementing redesign plans. If the district
has identified external providers who will assist it in implementing the intervention models,
provide the credentials, experiences, and qualifications of the provider for the relevant task.
d. Educator evaluation and teacher incentives: Describe the policies and strategies that the
district will use to adopt, adapt, or revise the state’s educator evaluation framework to
evaluate educator effectiveness as it relates to the school(s). Describe how the district will
identify and reward leaders, teachers and other staff who improve student achievement and
participate in opportunities to improve professional practice.
e. Extended learning time3: Describe how the district will increase the school year or the
school schedule to increase learning time for students in core academic subjects and other
subjects, and to increase opportunities for teachers to collaborate and plan together. Include a
description of the professional development and/or additional planning time staff will receive
in order to maximize the use of additional learning time.
5. District Systems for supporting, monitoring, and sustaining implementation: Provide a
detailed description of the district’s systems and processes for ongoing planning, support, and
monitoring the implementation of planned redesign efforts and how the district will sustain
redesign efforts beyond SRG funding.
2
Districts are encouraged, but not required, to partner with external providers. If a district is using an external provider(s), the district must
submit a narrative response to 4 (c). Districts may reference a tool provided by ESE to hold external partners accountable:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/apa/framework/level4/PipelineToolkit.pdf
3
Districts and schools should reference the USED’s Additional LEA Guidance on Increased Learning Time posted with this RFP in Additional
Documents
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a. Describe the teaming structures and other mechanisms, such as the use of coordinators,
liaisons, coaches, or networking opportunities, to be used to support and monitor
implementation of school-level redesign efforts.
b. Describe how the district will monitor the implementation of the selected intervention model
at each identified school and how the district will know whether planned interventions and
strategies are working, or not. Specifically, please describe how the district will provide for
review of data related to implementation benchmarks and measurable annual goals. Discuss
the frequency, type, and extent of monitoring activities and who will be responsible.
c. Describe how the district will ensure that the identified school(s) receive ongoing and
coordinated technical assistance and related support from the district, the state, or designated
external partner organizations. In your narrative, please describe:
i. How the district will differentiate assistance and support to schools, including current and
potential SRG funded schools; and
ii. How the district will formally coordinate the activities of partner organizations (e.g.,
external providers and other support organizations).
d. Provide an overview of how the district will sustain redesign efforts and which policies,
strategies, and use of resources contribute to building the capacity of the district and its
schools to sustain improvement efforts beyond the three years of the SRG timeline.
6. District Systems Implementation Benchmarks: Identify at least two (2) Early Evidence of
Change Benchmarks that the district will use to signal that district systems are being
implemented, and that the district will use to monitor its own progress in supporting school-level
redesign efforts4.
4
Please refer to the Implementation Benchmark Worksheet (Appendix E) for guidance on developing technical and
early evidence of change benchmarks.
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III. School-Level Redesign
Instructions
The School-Level Redesign section includes two parts. In Part A, please describe the strategic
thinking, planning, and data analysis that was used to identify priority areas for improvement and
the intervention model (Turnaround, Transformation, or Restart) that will be employed to directly
address the priority areas. In Part B, provide an explanation of the key strategies to be used within
each priority area for improvement, including specific detail on how the school will use and
implement strategies and actions aligned with the Conditions for School Effectiveness. The
narrative provided in Part B, in combination with Section IV, Implementation Timeline and
Benchmarks, will serve as the school’s blueprint for redesign efforts.
In order for a district to ensure eligibility for SRG funding, it must ensure that the required
additional elements listed for the federal intervention model chosen—Turnaround or
Transformation—are addressed in the school-level redesign narrative, if not previously addressed
in the Section II, District-Level Redesign.
The school-level redesign section of the narrative includes two parts:
Part A. School-Level Redesign Planning and Setting Priorities
1. School-level redesign team
2. Baseline data and needs analysis
3. Redesign model
4. Stakeholder support
Part B. Priority Areas for Improvement and Key Strategies
1. Overview of school redesign
2. Description of priority areas for improvement and key strategies
3. School systems to monitor implementation
Please submit a school-level redesign narrative that addresses each of the listed parts and
questions, following the instructions included in each part.
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Part A. School-Level Redesign Planning and Setting Priorities
Part A Narrative Response
1. School-level redesign team: Describe the school’s redesign planning and decision-making
process, including a description of the structure of the school-level redesign team, the identify
and credentials of key team members, how often the team meets, and the process by which
decisions were or will be made.
2. Baseline data and needs analysis: Provide a detailed and data-based analysis of the needs of the
school that assess the current status of the school’s implementation of the Conditions for School
Effectiveness. Use the data and needs analysis to identify a set of high-priority issues, linked to
the Conditions for School Effectiveness that will be used to drive redesign efforts.
In the description of your baseline data and needs analysis:
a. Describe how the school examined and analyzed multiple sources of data (e.g., MCAS,
growth, other achievement data, perceptual and behavioral data, and Conditions for School
Effectiveness self-assessment results) by sub-groups, grades, and other categories to identify
explanations for achievement outcomes and to identify patterns in the data.
b. Describe the core issues of academic concern (e.g., the performance of students in particular
subject areas, in certain grades, among certain populations of students) that were determined
through data analysis. Describe and provide data for those areas where significant groups of
students are achieving below standard and/or that show student achievement is flat or has
declined over time. For high schools, this should include a specific analysis regarding offtrack (for graduation) and out-of-school youth.
c. Describe how the school developed hypotheses and identified possible causes for academic
concerns. What are the questions that the school used to investigate observable patterns in the
data? What are the school’s hypotheses about the possible reasons for the observed patterns
and trends? Why will these strategies succeed when previous efforts have not?
d. List the key priorities for redesign—the Priority Areas for Improvement—based directly
upon the data analysis and development of hypotheses.
i. Determine what the school can change (programs, processes, professional knowledge and
skills); what it may influence (behavior, parent involvement, communication); and where
it may need to intervene (pre-school, tutorials, parent visits, etc).
ii. Select a manageable number of key Priority Areas for Improvement (e.g., 3 to 5
priorities) as the focus of school redesign and that will directly attend to the issues and
challenges identified in 2b and 2c, above.
3. Redesign approach: Provide a brief description of the approach to school redesign that will be
used in the identified school. The description must indicate which federal intervention model—
Turnaround, Transformation, or Restart—the district will or has already begun to implement
in this school. Explain why the selected intervention is appropriate for this particular school
based on the specific needs identified above. In the description of the approach to school
redesign, please:
b. Explain why the selected intervention is appropriate for this particular school. (Note: If the
district has begun implementing, in whole or in part, one of the federal intervention models—
Turnaround, Transformation, Restart—within the last two years and wishes to continue or
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complete the intervention being implemented, please be sure to describe the actions it has
already taken—including replacing the principal—to meet the specified federal
requirements.)
c. Describe how this approach will differ from previous reform efforts at the school. Briefly
explain the organizing principles or educational theory of change that will guide the
implementation of this particular intervention model and how this differs from what is
currently in place at the school.
4. Stakeholder support: Describe the interactions the district has had with relevant stakeholders in
the development of a redesign plan for each school. Provide evidence, if available, of teachers’
union support with respect to staffing and teacher evaluation requirements in the Turnaround and
Transformation models, school committee commitment to eliminate any barriers and to facilitate
full and effective implementation of the model, and the support of staff and parents in the school
to be served.
a. For Level 4 Schools only: Level 4 schools must summarize the recommendations of the
“Local Stakeholder Group” convened by the district superintendent as required by state law.
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Part B. Turnaround Priorities and Key Strategies
Instructions
The response to Part B must provide a detailed description (e.g., your blueprint) of the 3 to 5
priority areas for improvement and the corresponding key strategies that the district and school
will implement in the proposed redesign effort. In the narrative, please provide specific
information on how the strategies will be implemented. When describing proposed strategies,
districts and schools are asked to link the proposed strategies to the related Conditions for School
Effectiveness.
Important Notes Regarding the Conditions for School Effectiveness:
It is expected that the priorities and strategies described in in Part B will include efforts to
improve and enhance each of the Conditions for School Effectiveness. See Appendix B for a
listing of strategies and actions arranged by Condition for School Effectiveness to support
writing this section of the Redesign plan.
If one or more of the Conditions for School Effectiveness are not fully addressed by the listed
priorities and strategies, please use Appendix C to describe how the school’s proposed redesign
effort will attend to each condition.
Part B Narrative Response
1. Overview of school redesign: Provide a brief narrative overview of the school-level plan that
addresses the following questions:
a. What will the school look like in three years?
b. How will you know?
c. What early evidence of change will signal that the school is on the right track before MCAS
results are released?
d. How will the leadership team communicate and execute the vision for school redesign to
students, staff and stakeholders?
2. Description of priority areas for improvement and key strategies: Provide a detailed
description of the 3 to 5 priority areas for improvement the school will address in the proposed
redesign effort and details of the corresponding key strategies that the school will implement, and
how the district will support the school in these areas.
a. In your response, please explicitly link the district and school core issues, as identified in
Section 2b to the priority areas for improvement and their proposed associated key
strategies. Your priority improvement areas, as identified in Section 2d, and their key
strategies should be cross-linked to the appropriate Conditions for School Effectiveness.
Example 1:
Core issues: Chronic student absence; high rate of referral; high incidence of long and short term
suspensions
Priority Improvement Area 1: Address School Climate
Key Strategy 1: Implement PBIS program
Key Strategy 2: …..
Related Conditions for School Effectiveness: Professional Development and Structures for
Collaboration; Students’ Social, Emotional and Health Needs; and Family-School Engagement
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Example 2:
Core issues: Weak curricula, inconsistent instruction, and ineffective use of assessment data hinder
students from learning at high levels
Priority Improvement Area 1: Enhance the rigor of the curricula, improve the effectiveness of
instruction, and strengthen the utilization of assessment data;
Key Strategy 1: Set clear expectations for outstanding instruction and provide regular high-quality
instructional support and coaching to teachers
Key Strategy 2: …..
Related Conditions for School Effectiveness: Professional Development and Structures for Collaboration;
Effective Instruction; Effective School Leadership, Aligned Instruction
3. School Systems to Monitor and Sustain Implementation: Provide a detailed description of the
school’s systems and processes for supporting and monitoring the implementation of planned
redesign efforts, including plans on how to sustain the school’s improvement efforts.
a. Describe the teaming structures or other processes to be used to support and monitor
implementation of school-level redesign efforts.
b. Provide candid explanations of possible barriers to success and how they will be addressed.
c. Describe key practices or strategies that will help to sustain improvement efforts, in light of
the described barriers and potential unforeseen obstacles.
d. Describe how the school will use the Implementation Timelines and Benchmarks Workbook
to monitor redesign efforts and make mid-course corrections.
e. Describe how the school will access support systems at the district level to monitor
implementation of the school-level redesign plan.
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IV. Implementation Timeline and Benchmarks
Instructions
The Implementation Timeline and Benchmarks are to be completed using the Implementation Timeline
and Benchmarks Workbook, available as a Microsoft Excel file in the RFP.
Specific instructions:
1. Using the Implementation Timeline and Benchmark Template (in Microsoft Excel), insert all
listed Priority Areas for Improvement and Key Strategies, as describe in Section III of your
narrative, into the workbook.
 Insert the Priority Areas for Improvement in the first tab in the Worksheet
 Insert the Key Strategies for each Priority Areas for Improvement in the corresponding
worksheets (e.g., Priority Area for Improvement #1, #2, and so forth), in the column
labeled “Strategies”.
2. In the Priority Areas for Improvement worksheet (the first tab), complete columns c, d, e, and
f.
 What you’re currently seeing: Highlight the key issues and challenges related to the
stated Priority Area for Improvement.
 What you’d like to see (Vision): Provide a brief statement of your vision related to the
stated Priority Area for Improvement.
 Linkages to District Systems of Support: List the district systems (e.g., changes in
policies and district strategies) that directly relate to efforts to address the Priority Area
for Improvement.
 Linkages to Conditions for School Effectiveness: List the Conditions for School
Effectiveness that are being used and/or addressed in the Priority Area for Improvement.
3. Develop and insert implementation benchmarks—technical benchmarks and early evidence of
change benchmarks within each Priority Area for Improvement and for relevant Key
Strategies, as determined by the district and school as crucial to implementing planned efforts.
 Use the worksheet to list each implementation benchmark, how the benchmark will be
measured, and an approximate date when it is expected that the benchmark will be
achieved and/or assessed.
 List the expected outcomes for the Priority Area for Improvement, in the Expected
Outcomes column. Expected outcomes may reference or include Measurable Annual
Goals. **Note: It is not expected or required that all measurable annual goals be listed in
this format. Please use the Expected Outcomes column to record outcomes that are
directly relevant to your work and that relate to the Priority Area for Improvement.
4. Please provide specific dates for when key strategies will be implemented during Year 1 of the
redesign effort throughout each Priority Area for Improvement. Please use the Summary
Timeline worksheet (the last tab in the workbook) to record whether or not key strategies will
be continued through the course of the three-year effort AND to record new strategies that will
be implemented during years 2 and 3 of the grant. Detail on implementing strategies in years 2
and 3 is not required as part of the proposal for Year 1 SRG funding.
This document should be used as a tool for your Redesign Team to monitor progress throughout the
course of the grant.
Technical support on this portion of the School-Level Redesign Plan can be obtained by contacting
Erica Champagne at 781-338-3521 or echampagne@doe.mass.edu
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V. Measurable Annual Goals
A district applying for School Redesign funds must describe ambitious-yet-attainable measurable annual
goals for student achievement on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests in
both English language arts and mathematics that it has established in order to monitor the performance of
schools in which it will implement an intervention model.
Applicants should complete the Level 4 Measurable Annual Goals Template (with Sample Measures)
located in the RFP.
The district and school’s performance against these measurable annual goals will be assessed by ESE to
determine if sufficient progress has been made to warrant renewal of federal SRG awards to continue
implementing a Redesign Plan. All SRG Renewal awards are contingent upon making progress towards
each school’s student performance Measureable Annual Goals (MAGs).
In February 2012 Massachusetts received flexibility from certain No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
components, replacing Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) measures with the state’s new 100-point
cumulative Progress and Performance Index (PPI) metric. All schools classified into Level 4 will be
required to achieve a cumulative PPI of 75 or higher in the aggregate and for all student subgroups by the
end of their 3rd year of turnaround. (See Massachusetts’s approved Flexibility Request at
http://www2.ed.gov/policy/eseaflex/approved-requests/ma.pdf) SRG recipient schools’ are expected to
progress toward meeting a cumulative PPI of 75 or higher for all students and for all student subgroups by
the end of the third year of their Redesign Plan. When ESE identifies a school not making progress
towards their student performance targets and a low SRG Renewal Application score, termination of
funding is considered.
For detailed information on the rationale and methodology underlying the selection of measurable annual
goals for Level 4 schools, please see the Measurable Annual Goals: Background and Frequently Asked
Questions which can also be found here: http://www.doe.mass.edu/apa/sss/turnaround/level4/default.html
Other Measures
To receive higher than the minimum score of 3 required for grant approval, applicants must include
multiple measures of student performance in addition to MCAS measures. Applicants may select one or
more of the following measures, or identify other measures, particularly if they address key priorities in
school plans. Examples include:
1. Student Rates
a. Student attendance, dismissal rates, and exclusion rates
b. Student safety and discipline
c. Student promotion and dropout rates
2. College Readiness and School Culture
a. Student acquisition and mastery of twenty-first century skills
b. Development of college readiness, including at the elementary and middle school levels
c. Parent and family engagement
d. Building a culture of academic success among students
e. Building a culture of student support and success among school faculty and staff
f. Developmentally appropriate child assessments from pre-kindergarten through third
grade
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NOTES:
While the following are not required by ESE as outcome measures in school Turnaround plans, ESE will
collect data at the end of each year of the grant on these indicators to meet federal reporting requirements
for this grant:
1. Number of minutes within the school year
2. Distribution of teachers by performance level on the district’s teacher evaluation system
3. Teacher attendance rate
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VI. Budget
Please complete the separate budget workbook in Microsoft Excel located in the RFP.
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Appendix A
Federal Requirement Checklist: Transformation Model
1. Developing and increasing teacher and school leader effectiveness
The plan contains evidence that:
Circle Yes or No
(A) A new principal has been (or will be) hired for the 2014-15 school year to lead the school’s
transformation model.
Yes
No
(B) A new or revised evaluation system for teachers and principals will be implemented that takes
into account data on student growth and is designed and developed with teacher and principal
involvement.
Yes
No
(C) The district will develop and use strategies for identifying and rewarding leaders, teachers, and
other staff who increase student achievement or graduation rates and provide opportunities for
leaders and teachers to improve professional practice.
Yes
No
(D) The district will provide ongoing, high quality, job-embedded professional development that is
aligned with the school’s instructional program.
Yes
No
Yes
No
or A new principal was hired no earlier than July 1, 2012 that will continue the school’s
transformation model.
(E) The district will implement strategies to recruit, place, and retain staff.
2. Comprehensive instructional reform strategies
The plan contains evidence that:
Circle Yes or No
(A) The district is using data to identify and implement a research-based and aligned instructional
program.
Yes
No
(B) The district promotes the continuous use of student data in schools to inform and differentiate
instruction.
Yes
No
3. Increasing learning time and creating community-oriented schools
The plan contains evidence that:
(A) The model will provide extended learning time for students and teachers in the instructional
core, instruction in other subject and enrichment activities, and for teachers to collaborate and plan.
(B) The district will provide ongoing mechanisms for family and community engagement
Circle Yes or No
Yes
No
Yes
No
4. Operational flexibility and sustained support
The plan contains evidence that:
Circle Yes or No
(A) The school will be granted the operational flexibility necessary to implement a comprehensive
approach.
Yes
No
(B) The school will receive ongoing and intensive support from the district, the state, or an external
provider.
Yes
No
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 17 of 27
Federal Requirement Checklist: Turnaround Model
Requirements
The plan contains evidence that:
(1) A new principal has been (or will be) hired for the 2014-15 school year to lead the school’s
turnaround model.
Circle Yes or No
Yes
No
(2) The district will use locally adopted competencies to measure the effectiveness of staff,
including screening all existing staff and rehire no more than 50 percent of the staff from the
previous year.
Yes
No
(3) The district will develop and use strategies for identifying and rewarding leaders, teachers, and
other staff who increase student achievement or graduation rates and provide opportunities for
leaders and teacher to improve professional practice AND the district will implement strategies to
recruit, place, and retain staff.
Yes
No
(4) The district will provide ongoing, high quality, job-embedded professional development that is
aligned with the school’s instructional program.
Yes
No
(5) The district will adopt a new governance structure that will support the selected turnaround
model.
Yes
No
(6) The district is using data to identify and implement a research-based and aligned instructional
program.
Yes
No
(7) The district promotes the continuous use of student data in schools to inform and differentiate
instruction.
Yes
No
(8) The model will provide extended learning time for students and teachers in the instructional
core, instruction in other subjects and enrichment activities, and for teachers to collaborate and
plan.
Yes
No
(9) The district will provide appropriate social-emotional and community-oriented services and
supports for students.
Yes
No
or A new principal was hired no earlier than July 1, 2012 that will continue the school’s
turnaround model.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 18 of 27
Appendix B
Guidance on Incorporating the Conditions for School Effectiveness
Districts and schools may use the following indicators, organized according to the Conditions
for School Effectiveness, when developing strategies to be used in the redesign plan. As noted,
a successful school-level redesign plan must include strategies and/or policies that attend to
each of the Conditions and demonstrate that actions are being taken to implement the
Conditions for School Effectiveness.
Schools are not required to address each Condition separately; rather, the Redesign Plan is
organized so that districts and schools can develop key priority areas for improvement and
related strategies that use and leverage the Conditions. The Conditions are intended to work
together in an integrated fashion to support effective school turnaround and transformation.
The indicators provided here serve as a guide to assist schools in thinking strategically about
each of the Conditions and ensuring that submitted proposals address each Condition.
Leadership and Governance
1. Effective school leadership: Describe how the district will attract, develop, and retain an
effective school leadership team that obtains staff commitment to improving student learning
and implements a clearly defined mission and set of goals.
a. Describe how the leader chosen for the school (or currently working in the school) is
capable of building a sense of shared accountability among staff and students and is able
to drive instructional improvement.
b. Describe how an effective school leadership team will be mobilized. Indicate whether the
district will require the principal, administrators, teachers and staff to reapply for their
positions in the school, describe the process the district will utilize to re-staff the school.
Human Resources and Professional Development
2. Principal’s staffing authority: The district must ensure that the principal has the authority
to identify the best teachers and ensure that they are hired to work in the identified school.
a. Describe the operating flexibilities the school and principal will have around staffing to
implement fully a comprehensive approach to substantially improve student achievement
outcomes and increase high school graduation rates.
3. Professional development and structures for collaboration: Professional development for
school staff must include both job-embedded and individually pursued learning and
structures for collaboration that enable teachers to have regular, frequent department and/or
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 19 of 27
grade-level common planning and meeting time that is used to improve implementation of
the curriculum and instructional practice.
a. Describe the school’s structures to provide increased, regular, and frequent meeting times
for faculty to collaborate, plan, and engage in professional development within and across
grades and subjects in order to improve implementation of the curriculum and
instructional practice.
b. Describe how professional development will:
i. Focus on improving instruction, through the regular use of data, coaching and other
job-embedded professional development models, and teacher-specific professional
development.
ii. Provide ongoing, high-quality, job-embedded professional development that is
aligned with the school’s comprehensive instructional program and designed with
school staff to ensure they are equipped to facilitate effective teaching and learning
and have the capacity to successfully implement school reform strategies.
iii. Provide or support individually pursued learning, including content-based learning.
Student Support
4. Tiered instruction and adequate learning time: The school must use data and design a
school schedule to provide adequate learning time for all students in core subjects.
a. Describe the systems the school will put into place to identify students needing additional
supports and to inform and differentiate instruction in order to meet the academic needs
of individual students. What interventions will the school use? How will they be chosen?
b. Describe the specific steps the school will take steps to address achievement gaps for
limited English-proficient, special education and low-income students; in particular,
describe how the school will develop or expand alternative English language learning
programs for limited English proficient students, notwithstanding chapter 71A.
c. How will the school use data and extended learning time to ensure that students’
academic and social-emotional needs are appropriately identified and monitored (e.g.,
every two weeks) and specific interventions identified and used on an ongoing basis?
5. Students’ social, emotional, and health needs: The school must create a safe environment,
make effective use of a system for addressing the social, emotional, and health needs of its
students, and provide appropriate social-emotional and community-oriented services and
supports for students. Describe how the school will:
a. Take steps to address social service and health needs of students and their families, to
help students arrive and remain at school ready to learn. This may include mental health
and substance abuse screening.
6. Family-school engagement: The school must develop strong working relationships with
families and appropriate community partners/providers in order to support students’
academic progress and social/emotional well-being. Describe how the school will:
a. Provide ongoing mechanisms for parent, family, and community engagement.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 20 of 27
b. Take steps to improve or expand child welfare services and, as appropriate, law
enforcement services in the school community, in order to promote a safe and secure
learning environment.
c. Improve workforce development services provided to students and their families at the
school, to provide students and families with meaningful employment skills and
opportunities.
Financial and Asset Management
7. Strategic use of resources and adequate budget authority: District and school plans must
be coordinated to provide integrated use of internal and external resources (human, financial,
community, and other) to achieve each school’s mission.
a. Describe the operating flexibilities the school and principal will have around budget to
implement fully a comprehensive approach to substantially improve student achievement
outcomes and increase high school graduation rates (if applicable).
b. Provide a three-year financial plan for the school. In this plan, describe how any
additional funds to be provided by the district, commonwealth, federal government or
other sources will support the implementation of the Redesign Plan, and how the district
will align other resources (e.g. Title I, Part A—regular and school improvement funds,
Title II Part A and Title II Part D, Title II, Part A, other state and community resources)
with the proposed intervention model.
c. Describe how the intervention reforms will be sustained after the Redesign Plan period
and, if applicable, after federal SRG funds end in three years. Specifically address:
i. The level and amount of technical assistance the district will provide to the school in
each year of the Redesign Plan (e.g., this may decrease over the three-year period).
ii. How resources may be utilized or redirected to support priority areas (e.g., structures
for collaborative planning time, professional development for school staff to ensure
that redesign practices are institutionalized) to ensure that redesign efforts can be
sustained.
iii. Plans for use of other resources to sustain critical elements of the redesign model.
Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment
8. Aligned curriculum: The school’s taught curricula must be aligned across multiple
dimensions. Describe how data is used to identify and implement comprehensive, researchbased, instructional programs that are aligned with Massachusetts curriculum frameworks
and MCAS performance level descriptions, vertically aligned between grades (from one
grade to the next), and horizontally aligned (across classrooms at the same grade level and
across sections of the same course).
9. Effective instruction: Instruction across subject areas must reflect effective practice and
high expectations for all students. Describe how school staff will have a common
understanding of the features of high-quality standards-based and the school’s system for
monitoring instructional practice.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 21 of 27
10. Student Assessment: The school must use a balanced system of formative and benchmark
assessments.
a. Describe the specific processes the district and school will put in place to promote the
continuous use of assessment data to inform and differentiate instruction in order to meet
the academic needs of individual students.
b. If applicable, specifically describe the developmentally appropriate child assessments
from pre-kindergarten through third grade that the school will use and be sure to include
annual implementation and use of data benchmarks in the action plan.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 22 of 27
Appendix C
Addressing the Conditions for School Effectiveness, Supplemental Planning Form
If a school does not address one or more of the Conditions for School Effectiveness in the
narrative portion of the Redesign Plan, in Section II or Section III, the school must submit
Appendix C to describe how the school will address those Conditions.
List the Condition(s)
for School
Effectiveness:
Describe how the school will use and implement the Condition(s) to support school-level
redesign efforts.
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 23 of 27
Appendix D
Required Section for Restart Applications
Instructions
Districts selecting the Restart Option for one or more schools must (1) choose one of the two options listed
below and (2) respond to the Restart Model Application Additional Requirements.
Required Section for Restart Applications: Part One
Districts have two options when applying for the Restart model. Select (e.g., check the box) an option, review
the provided instructions and guidance and ensure that the necessary information is incorporated into the
district’s School Redesign Grant Submission. Include a signed original of this document in the full School
Redesign Grant Submission.
 Option 1 for LEAs that have identified the Charter Management Organization (CMO) or Education
Management Organization (EMO) to be used with the Restart School.
1. Complete all sections of the School Redesign Grant Submission Requirements as instructed in the
Application. Additional guidance for each section is provided here, as follows:
a. In Section II (District-Level Redesign), Part 4, describe the process that was used to select the
CMO or EMO, including how eligible providers were recruited, screened, and selected.
b. In Section II (District-Level Redesign), Part 4, describe the credentials, experiences, and
qualifications of the CMO or EMO as an organization with the capacity to work in your
district and carry out assigned responsibilities.
2. Respond to the Restart Model Application Additional Requirements.
 Option 2 for LEAs that have not identified the Charter Management Organization (CMO) or
Education Management Organization (EMO) to be used with the Restart School.
1. Complete Sections I (Executive Summary), II (District-Level Redesign), V (MAGs), and VI (Budget)
of the School Redesign Grant Submission Requirements.
a. In Section II (District-Level Redesign), Part 4, describe the process that will be or is being
used to select the CMO or EMO, including how eligible providers will be recruited, screened,
and selected.
b. In Section II (District-Level Redesign), Part 4, describe the expected credentials, experiences,
and qualifications of the CMO or EMO as an organization with the capacity to work in your
district and carry out assigned responsibilities.
c. In Section II (District-Level Redesign), Part 4, describe the flexibility the CMO or EMO will
have with respect to changing district policy as it pertains to staffing, facilities, and
transportation.
2. Respond to the Restart Model Application Additional Requirements.
Guidance regarding Option 2
-
-
Once the CMO or EMO is in place at the school, the district and CMO/EMO have 90 days to
submit to ESE a school-level Redesign Plan according to the School Redesign Grant Submission
Requirements (Sections III and IV).
The selected external partner (CMO or EMO) with a demonstrated track record of success may
propose an implementation plan that might not address all the elements of the School Redesign
Grant Submission Requirements in Section III if a compelling rationale is given for why it is not
necessary.
Superintendent Signature: _____________________________
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Date: ____________________
Page 24 of 27
Required Section for Restart Applications: Part Two
Restart Model Application Additional Requirements
Option 1 and Option 2
A. Provide a detailed description of how the charter management organization (CMO) or education
management organization (EMO) will be held responsible through a performance/partnership contract
to perform the functions required in this application or subsequent school-level Redesign Plan
application. To the extent possible, please describe the specific performance measures that will be
used and how the performance measures relate to the Conditions for School Effectiveness.
<Enter narrative response>
B. Describe how the district will plan for the sustainability of the restart once SIG funding expires, i.e. if
a district is paying a CMO or EMO for 3 years, describe in detail its strategy for ensuring sufficient
funding for the school in subsequent years.
<Enter narrative response>
C. Describe the district process for assigning and placing staff that the EMO or CMO seeks to transfer
out of the school(s). How will this process take into account educator ratings?
<Enter narrative response>
Option 2 Respondents Only
D. Timeline: For districts that have yet to identify a CMO/EMO, please (a) provide a timeline for
recruiting, selecting, and contracting with the CMO/EMO; (b) an expected date when the CMO/EMO
will assume leadership of the school, and (c) an expected date when the LEA and CMO/EMO will
submit its school-level Redesign Plan application to ESE for review, which must be within 90 days of
CMO/EMO appointment.
<Enter narrative response>
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 25 of 27
Appendix E: Implementation Benchmarks - Additional Guidance
Developing useful and meaningful Implementation Benchmarks
Priority
Area for
Improvement
Strategies
(Policies, Practices,
Programs)
Implementation Benchmarks
How will you know that what you are doing is working?
Technical Implementation
Through Technical
Implementation and
Evidence of Change, our
strategies will lead to...
Early Evidence of Change
Examples:
↓
1. Improve and
increase instruction
through use of the
RTI model and
increased
professional
development
Professional
development for staff
and leaders
Structural changes
(schedules, meeting
structures, redesign
teams)
Policy changes
2. Ensure students’
readiness to learn
through provision
of holistic social,
emotional and
wellness supports
in school and in
community
partnerships
Staffing or role changes
(e.g., coaches, tutors)
New programs (e.g., a
new wellness program)
Evidence that the technical
aspects of the
strategy/activity/training have
been implemented.
1. # of teachers participate in
training
2. New schedule or teaming
structure in place
3. Staff hired
4. Policy change adopted
5. New assessment system
developed
6. Curriculum aligned
How will you know that the
strategy is having its intended →
impact? On what/who?
↓
-Changes in actions
-Changes in discourse
-Changes in instruction
-Changes in belief
Long Term Goals
Improved Student
Outcomes
MAGs
Completion and
application of core
components (e.g.,
common assessments,
aligned curriculum)
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Short Term Impact
What’s different for kids?
What’s different for adults?
Page 26 of 27
Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Page 27 of 27